Hockenbury Discovering Psychology 5th txtbk

B-14 APPENDIX B Industrial/Organizational PsychologyPublicorganizations9%Privateorganizations17%Consulting22%Figure B.5 Work Settings of I/OPsychologists Most I/O psychologists workin institutions of higher education. Fortyonepercent of the members of the Societyfor Industrial and Organizational Psychologywork in colleges and universities. Next comeI/O psychologists who work as consultantsto organizations (22 percent). Anothersubstantial percentage (17 percent) are employedby large private corporations, such asinsurance companies and consumer-productmanufacturers. Public organizations, such asgovernment agencies, employ half as manyI/O psychologists as private organizations do(9 percent versus 17 percent).Source: Khanna & Medsker (2007).Academic41%Other11%settings (primarily universities and colleges); 22 percent worked as consultantsto organizations; 17 percent worked in private organizations; and 9percent worked for public organizations (Khanna & Medsker, 2007).Those with bachelor’s degrees may find work in fields related to I/Opsychology, such as in the administration of training programs or as interviewers.However, a master’s (M.A.) or doctorate (Ph.D.) degree isrequired to work in the field of I/O psychology. Though there areplenty of programs to choose from, with more than 200 master’s anddoctorate programs available for I/O psychologists in the UnitedStates, admission into these programs can be very competitive, especiallyat the doctoral level.The majority of SIOP members hold doctorate degrees (87 percent) asopposed to master’s degrees (13 percent). When selecting your degree, youmust consider the length and requirements of the program. Are you prepared toattend graduate school as a full-time student for five to six years, conduct a detailedresearch project, and write a dissertation? If your answer to these questions is yes,then a doctorate degree may be for you. This degree qualifies you for I/O psychologistpositions at major corporations and research and teaching positions at collegesand universities, and it provides the most credibility to conduct consulting work.If you would prefer to pursue a degree that allows you to quickly apply yourknowledge and skills to the workplace, then a master’s degree may be a better fit.Most master’s programs require two to three years of graduate course work and thecompletion of a research project. Having a master’s degree allows you to work as anI/O psychologist carrying out I/O duties for private or public organizations, teachat two-year colleges, and take on consulting opportunities.Finally, a bachelor’s degree, attained after four years of undergraduate coursework, yields numerous employment opportunities in areas involving I/O psychology.These positions include jobs for personnel, training, and labor-relations specialists.Although these jobs are expected to show faster-than-average job growththrough the year 2016, the high number of qualified college graduates and experiencedworkers will keep these jobs highly competitive (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics,2008).What’s the payoff for all this education and hard work? Salaries for I/O psychologistsare dependent upon educational qualifications, industry, and experience. The2006 salary survey of SIOP members indicated that the median salary for those withdoctorate degrees was $98,500; for those with master’s degrees, the median salarywas $72,000 (Khanna & Medsker, 2007). It also helps to know that the job marketfor I/O psychologists has remained strong over the years and is projected tohave an above-average growth rate (21 percent) through 2016 (Occupational OutlookHandbook, 2008–2009).If you would like to learn more about career opportunities in I/O psychology,visit some of the Web sites listed in Table B.1.Table B.1Below is a list of Web sites that relate to working in the field of industrial/organizationalpsychology.www.aomonline.org Academy of Managementwww.dol.govU.S. Department of Labor Job Information Sitewww.shrm.orgSociety for Human Resource Managementwww.siop.orgSociety for Industrial and Organizational Psychologywww.bls.govU.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statisticswww.onetcenter.org Occupational Information Network